October 1979

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Features

Acid Rain

In recent decades the acidity of rain and snow has increased sharply over wide areas. The principal cause is the release of sulfur and nitrogen oxides by the burning of fossil fuels

Linear-Chain Conductors

A few materials with a linear or columnar architecture conduct electricity well only along a single axis. The one-dimensional organization of such a material shapes its electronic properties

By Arthur J. Epstein and Joel S. Miller

The Acoustic Microscope

Research on ultrasonic imaging technology has given rise to a new experimental tool capable of generating pictures with a resolution comparable to that of light micrographs

By Calvin F. Quate

Legionellosis

The mysterious 1976 Legionnaires' disease epidemic has been traced to a previously unknown bacterium. Legionellosis, the infection the bacterium gives rise to, has turned out to be not very rare after all

By David W. Fraser and Joseph E. McDade

The Photosynthetic Membrane

The conversion of light energy into chemical energy by green plants is accomplished in the thylakoid membrane of the plant cell. Electron microscopy reveals the asymmetry that makes the conversion possible

By Kenneth R. Miller

The Lava Lakes of Kilauea

The eruptions of the Hawaiian volcano leave pools of molten basalt that can take as long as 25 years to solidify. They provide a natural laboratory for studying the nature of magma from the earth's mantle

By Dallas L. Peck, Thomas L. Wright and Robert W. Decker

The Evolution of the Crocodilians

Some 200 million years after these reptiles arose and diversified three families remain: alligators, crocodlles and gavials. They are the last of the archosaurians, the ruling reptiles of the Mesozoic

By Eric Buffetaut

Constructive Mathematics

This approach is based on the belief that mathematics can have real meaning only if its concepts can be constructed by the human mind, an issue that has divided mathematicians for more than a century

By Allan Calder

Departments

50 and 100 Years Ago, October 1979

Science and the Citizen, October 1979

Letters

Letters to the Editors, October 1979

Recommended

Books, October 1979

Mathematical Recreation

Mathematical Games, October 1979

Amateur Scientist

The Amateur Scientist, October 1979

Departments

The Authors, October 1979

Bibliography, October 1979

Purchase To Read More

Digital Issue ?Read or download this issue’s articles online. *A printed copy of this issue is not included. $7.99

Print + Digital All Access Subscription ?Read or download this issue’s articles online. Plus, subscribe to get Print, Online and Tablet access to the next 12 new issues to be released as well as Online access to archives back to 1845. $99.00

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